


I Will

by dexstarr



Series: dark arts last writer standing [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Book 6: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Community: darkarts_ldws, Gen, Legilimency, Legilimens, Spinner's End, Unbreakable Vow (Harry Potter)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-07
Updated: 2017-09-07
Packaged: 2018-12-24 20:07:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12020052
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dexstarr/pseuds/dexstarr
Summary: Snape uses Legilimency when he and Narcissa make the Unbreakable Vow.Set during "Spinner's End" inHarry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.





	I Will

**Author's Note:**

> _Harry Potter_ is not mine and no profit is made from this work. Written for the LJ community [darkarts-ldws](https://darkarts-ldws.livejournal.com). The dialogue is from page 36 of the American edition of HBP.

The hardwood floor was uncomfortable under his bony knees, but that was the last thing on Severus’s mind as he knelt across from Narcissa and reached for her right hand.   
  
“Will you, Severus, watch over my son, Draco, as he attempts to fulfill the Dark Lord’s wishes?”  
  
“I will.”  
  
He had thought this might happen, as had Dumbledore; the only question had been when Narcissa would show up on his doorstep. That she had brought Bellatrix with her had been the real surprise, and Severus hoped that the crazy witch wouldn’t go running to the Dark Lord with Narcissa’s treachery like a puppy with a new toy. However, he doubted Bellatrix would, as he had solidly reminded her that Lucius hadn’t been the only Death Eater at the Ministry on that disastrous night.   
  
Narcissa’s blue eyes were glassy with unshed tears, and Severus found himself slipping into their ocean-like depths.  _Legilimens_  was almost an afterthought — she wanted him to enter her mind. Her mental shields fell as Narcissa guided him deeper into her thoughts, and Severus ignored all the tantalizing glimpses of the Dark Lord and his future plans, instead concentrating only on the memory she wanted him to see.  
  
_The only spots of light in the dark room were the blond heads of Narcissa and Draco and the red eyes of the Dark Lord._  
  
As her son crawled to the Dark Lord’s throne, Narcissa whimpered in horror, and Severus heard Bellatrix swiftly admonish her sister for acting so disgracefully in front of their master.   
  
“And will you, to the best of your ability, protect him from harm?”  
  
“I will.”  
  
_Severus watched as Draco pulled up his left sleeve. The boy’s forearm was flawless, but then the Dark Lord touched the pale skin with his wand, and Draco howled in pain as the Dark Mark burned into his flesh._  
  
“And should it prove necessary … if it seems Draco will fail …” Narcissa whispered, her voice faltering as she broadcasted her overwhelming fear that her son would indeed fail. Severus’s hand twitched within hers from the force of her terror, but he just squeezed her tear-damp palm and waited for her to continue with the Vow. "Will you carry out the deed that the Dark Lord has ordered Draco to perform?”   
  
_He saw a tear slide down Narcissa’s cheek as her son was given a mission that would almost certainly result in his death. Then the Dark Lord beckoned her forward, and she dropped to her knees and crawled to him. Severus felt sick as he listened to Narcissa say, “T-thank you, my Lord, for the h-honor you have bestowed upon my family.”_  
  
“I will.”

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was originally written in December 2010, for Round One, Challenge Three, of [darkarts-ldws](https://darkarts-ldws.livejournal.com). The prompt was _Legilimens_ , and Severus Snape/any canon character. This drabble won first place for this challenge.
> 
> Come visit me on [tumblr!](http://galacticcoyote.tumblr.com/)


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